AROUND THE WORLD.

Alleged bin Laden aide reported held

LONDON, BRITAIN — British authorities reportedly have arrested a fugitive Islamic cleric known as Abu Qatada, wanted in the United States and Europe as an emissary of Osama bin Laden.

The arrest, said to have occurred in an armed raid in a South London public housing development Wednesday, was the most high-profile of Britain's efforts to uncover bin Laden's suspected network of support among radical Muslims in Britain.

Abu Qatada, 42, a Jordanian of Palestinian descent, dropped out of public view almost a year ago after his $260,000 in assets were frozen. He had been identified in court testimony in the U.S. as a member of Al Qaeda and subsequently was linked to Richard Reid, the Briton who was overpowered on an American Airlines flight in December with explosives hidden in his shoes.

Qatada also was linked to Zacarias Moussaoui, suspected as a potential 20th hijacker in the Sept. 11 plot.

British authorities declined Friday to publicly confirm a series of media reports that Abu Qatada had been seized.